Sammendrag
As a part of the Arctic, Svalbard is a remote area with few local sources emitting pollutants to the environment. Despite this, higher concentrations of pollutants than what would be expected are observed here due to long-range transport. Pollutants that are released to the atmosphere can be transported by the wind and end up in the Arctic. It is thus of interest to investigate the extent of pollutants found here. Analyzing moss and snow samples are two ways to study the atmospheric pollution, as both media take up atmospheric compounds. In this study, moss (Hylocomium Splendens) from Ny-Ålesund, Svalbard, is collected and analyzed for polychlorinated biphenyls, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, and trace elements (with focus on the long-range atmospheric transport related elements V, Cr, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn, As, Se, Mo, Ag, Cd, In, Sn, Sb, W, Hg, Tl, Pb, and Bi). The results from different sampling locations are compared with each other, as well as the extent of trace elements in moss are compared to the extent of trace elements found in snow samples collected in proximity of Ny-Ålesund from 2017. This can provide interesting information about the potential long-range atmospheric transport of pollutants to Ny-Ålesund, as well as snow and moss' ability to study atmospheric pollution.
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